Remnants of Heart
by YinYangBangBang
Summary: The newest apprentice to the Vale Palace's guard, and the King's first servant and royal adviser; Weiss Schnee and Blake Belladonna couldn't be any more different. But it's strange what things fate brings to draw the two together. And a visit from infamous pirate Captain Xiao Long was the last thing either of them expected. (Pirate AU, NaNo challenge)
1. Prologue

In the days of old, the world was treacherous. The ocean was brutal and untamed, claiming the lives of any that ventured into her waters. Waves, storms, monsters; no one would dare try to venture into her in fear they would meet the fate of many before them.

Until there was once a humble sailor. One whom had fallen in love with the seas. She traveled her constantly, searching for adventure upon her in all forms it came. From hauling her boat through mighty hail storms, to surviving the fierce waves that shook her boat to its core. No matter how many times she fell in, no matter how many time the ocean tried; she could not get rid of her. Eventually, the sea fell in love with her too, and calmed in her presence. She never wanted to be apart from her sailor.

The sailor was granted a gift. A gift that would allow her to travel the seas forever, to be one with the ocean just as she desired. She graciously accepted. The gift granted her immortality and immunity any hardships sailors faced. She could tame the storms, waves and the beasts that dwelled in her waves, and make them her most loyal allies.

For hundreds of years, she continued to sail. She learnt the seas like the back of her hand, knew exactly what winds would take her where. But it wasn't enough. Over the years, the sailor grew lonely. No longer did she see her relationship with the sea as one of love, but one of loneliness. She craved the company of another human being and wished to return to land.

But when she anchored down at her old island home and took a step on earth, her gift turned into a curse.

With each step, she was transformed into the very beasts that were once her allies, taking on a hideous form with each step. Humanity ran screaming, every time. No longer was she welcome at the village she once called home, no longer were her fellow man her friends. She was chased back to the loneliness of the ocean again.

Feeling betrayed, the sailor had no choice but to remain isolated. For years longer she mourned the loss of her humanity, and began to grow bitter and twisted. She vowed Humanity would pay for their treatment of her, and vowed to find a way to return to it, as their ruler.

Using the ocean and its creatures as her tool, she rained chaos on any seaside villages she came across on her travels. Thousands of men and women lost their lives defending their homes from her wrath, but bloodshed wasn't enough for the twisted sailor. She wanted more. Still wishing to satisfy her desire for human company, she plundered the villages for their children, corrupting them into a loyal crew for her everlasting voyage to find a way to return to humanity.

Still today she travels her beloved, thirsty for blood, eager to satisfy her craving for death.

So if you see the black sails of her ship, The Glass Sword, in your telescope when you're in the crow's nest, or happen to spot the war torn flag from your lighthouse in your once peaceful village; know she comes for you. She comes for your children. She comes for your blood. She comes for your despair. But how can you run from the ocean she controls? There is only one option you have.

Pray to god for the mercy of a quick death.

* * *

[Happy NaNo! This year I'm challenging myself to write a fic in a month. Hope you enjoy, and good luck with your own projects!]


	2. Chapter 1

"We're gonna hit it at dusk. That time, the day guards are switching with the night guards, but most of them will be in the barracks away from the palace."

"Yeah, but there'll be twice as many when they do spot something's up."

"That's why we take leverage, dummy. Told you before, don't be scared to bring someone onboard, the brig sometimes needs a run in."

"Right, right. So, the plan?"

"Cannon hits the walls to cause a distraction, then you hit the vault while I hit the master bedroom."

"Are you seriously ditching me and gold to try and get some di-?!"

"Eww, no! Don't be gross! Besides, I could get _way_ better pickin's if that's what I wanted. The king's rumoured to have something I've had my eye on a while, something he wouldn't keep in a treasury."

"... You are _really_ not helping with me thinking of innuendos here."

"Leave those and the puns to me, monkey dude. Are we doing this or not?"

"Oh hell yeah. Can't wait to get started."

"Sweet. Tell 'em we're gonna eat like kings tonight!"

* * *

The sunlight was starting to fade over the Vale Palace. And yet, the palace was bustling with activity. Today was a special day. There was yet another recruit to the Vale guard who was being shown the ropes around the castle, from the ins and outs of her daily duties to the locations of anything she should ever need.

Weiss Schnee. A hopeful protege under the training of her sister, Winter Schnee, the head commander of the Vale guard itself. Both women of Atlas, finely dressed in white military uniforms with light blue accents. She had been training for this moment for years now and had gone above and beyond under her sister's help to be ready to pursue a career by her side and find her place in life. Her place as a soldier for one of the four kingdoms of Remnant.

The both of them were being toured around the castle by the King's most trusted advisor. Blake Belladonna. A tall woman with her own smart uniform, in black and yellow accents fitting for a higher class such as herself. Despite her long black hair always being down, a black bow was always her signature feature, present atop her head as usual.

"That's basically it." That was the only downside. While excellent at her job, Blake was quiet. She had said very few words on their journey around the palace together, allowing Winter to do most of the talking herself or just answering simple questions. Holding her hands behind her back once they entered the courtyard again, she offered a professional smile. "Anymore questions before you begin your first shift tomorrow? I think we went over everything, but if not..."

"I believe Weiss is well informed on the tasks she'll have." Winter spoke on behalf of her sister, asserting her authority over the both of them. Turning to face her instead, she smiled to her. "You'll likely be guarding the treasury while you get a grasp on things. That and breaking up any petty brawls every so often."

A rather smug Weiss started to smile. She'd been through enough training to pass her trials, enough for her to be confident in her abilities where she couldn't before. Being a relative of someone with such authority was also a helpful factor. Unable to help herself, she laughed. "And there was me, thinking I'd be going out and hunting pirates from day one. I'd be lying if I said I wasn't disappointed."

"Oh dear Sister..." Winter cooed, smiling right back at her. Pirates had been a subject every so often as they wandered the palace. For some reason, Weiss was fascinated by them. Or at least, fascinated with the possibility of meeting and arresting one for herself. It was a very common topic for the sisters to talk about, and whenever Winter told her tales of her own encounters, Weiss was always intrigued. "Sadly the pirate hunting will have to wait until you move up in the ranks. For now you're more... security rather than bounty hunter."

Weiss's smile fell slightly. She understood the terms, that she had to go through the system just like her sister had. She'd already been lucky enough to skip the first step in guard duty among the city, but she had to master guarding royalty before she could be trusted to move onto the military. Still, she loved thinking about the possibility. "Forgive me for being excited about when the time comes. I'd love to be the one who brings the crew of The Ember Celica to justice."

Though still quiet, the subject also seemed to interest the advisor. It seemed odd that the bow on top her head seemed to perk up as she listened in. And even more odd when she quietly laughed. "'The Ember Celica'. Isn't that the slave ship that got stolen by the same Faunus 'cargo' they were transporting?"

Raising an eyebrow, Weiss looked around to Blake. "W-Well, yes; but they had help from a mutinous ferryman, why?"

"Well, saying they need to be brought to justice when their only crime was wanting to escape..." Blake could only shrug her shoulders. "It seems a little narrow minded to me."

Whatever confidence Weiss once had was immediately shot down. Instead the poor guard in training was reduced to small mumbles and fumbles over her own words, unable to come up with any form of comeback. She could feel heat flooding her cheeks from embarrassment. How dare an advisor make a fool of her like that!

"Narrow minded would be ignoring the threat that ship is on our oceans. Their crimes are far more serious than a dash for freedom. I believe stealing from royal vessels is treason, is it not?"." Winter corrected. A stern expression easily burst Blake's own small bubble of confidence she had only just gained. The head of the royal guard wouldn't take someone making a fool of her own blood so lightly. "Surely the head advisor would know these details."

"Right..." Blake shifted uncomfortably. While she wanted to correct Winter again, it would be no use. In her experience, any military persons were all the same. Stubborn, rule following sheep with no concept of thinking. The head guard would be no different. And when someone with her authority could inform the king to the same level of sincerity as her, it would be a risk to her job to continue.

Clearing her throat and changing the subject, she turned to pace down the hall, expecting them to follow. "Well, since you know everything you need for tomorrow, the only thing left is for the king to confirm your contract. You just sign a piece of paper, job's yours."

"Perfect," Weiss said gleefully. "I've always wanted to meet his Highness. I shan't fail him."

"Of course not."

Only a few minutes in her presence and Blake was already becoming irritated with the younger Schnee girl. At times, Winter was difficult enough to deal with; but at least she only came into the palace every so often to check how things were. Weiss would become a resident from nine till five every week day. How on earth would she cope with that?

Such limits were about to be put to the test as they passed the courtyard. Around this time each day, the lawns and pathways were maintained by the servants of the castle. At least, that's what the kingdom knew. For everyone within the castle walls, they knew better. For the newcomer Weiss, she was about to see the truth firsthand for herself.

At first, she thought it strange that servants of the castle required supervision as they scrubbed the stone pathways, but upon closer inspection, she noticed something about all of them. These weren't regular human servants. Each had a unique feature about them. One, a pair of long floppy ears could be seen poking out from their long, shaggy hair. Another, a long tail was present from their shorts. And another had a pair of impressive tusks.

She knew this kind, they weren't human. They were the slave species. Faunus.

"Hey!"

One guard yelled, approaching a rather skinny Faunus girl who had been starting to get up from scrubbing the ground. But as he approached, she very quickly returned to her duties, scrubbing faster than ever. "S-Sorry sir, it won't happen again!"

"It better not." The guard yelled. "You know what happens to slaves who slack."

"Y-Yes sir!"

The exchange was witnessed by the three, all whom reacted in very different ways. For Weiss, she was unsure of what to say. She had watched with wide eyes, and flinched when the guard got closer to the girl as though she were afraid he'd hit her. Blake, she watched with a frown. Faunus slavery was a common site in Remnant, but it always disgusted her. Clearly she was upset to view such a threat and poor treatment, even if she was unable to speak up about it. Despite being head advisor, that was still above her power. And Winter...

"It's good to see your current workers are keeping everything in check."

While Blake found her eyes narrowing at such words, she forced a smile as she looked back at Winter. A clearly pained one, but thankfully the elder Schnee never picked up on it.

Unfortunately, that silence seemed to guide Weiss on how to react. And she did so by following her sister's example. "W-Well, if they did their work right in the first place; they wouldn't have to get punished! It's not that hard."

Blake could only narrow her eyes. While she was irritated with the younger Schnee, she held a thin hope that perhaps she could be different from the other guards in how she treated their lower class. Such hopes were shattered with such a sentence, as per usual.

Every time it was the same. A young new guard who she hoped could change it all, someone she could trust to be left with the palace's slaves but treat them differently from all others, someone who would give them a break. No such chance. But what could she do? She was just an advisor. It seemed no human in Vale, no human in Remnant seemed to share her opinions on the slavery of Faunus. What she would give for something, _anything_ to change it all.

 **BOOM!**

A cannon ball blasting its way through the castle walls was the last thing anyone expected. Debris flew all over the yard, scarcely missing the three and the nearby guards and slaves. But it wasn't to be the first.

 **BOOM!**

Not even a few seconds later, the wall took another impact. The three had managed to duck away in time, yet again missing the debris by mere inches. As panic and fear spread through Faunus and guards alike, any possible theory of a misfire was completely out of the question by now; this was a deliberate attack. Someone was attacking the Vale Palace!

The dust began to settle, and their attacker became clear. In the distance, there was the shape of a boat. For common folk, it was an easily distinguishable shape and a common sight in the docks. A slave ship. As it cleared more, it was obvious this was no ordinary slave ship. It was far older in design, one of a discontinued class that most of the kingdoms ordered to be destroyed, leaving it to be only one suspect. Any guard had heard the tales, any resident had seen the bounty flyers all around town. And the large, orange flag with its yellow fiery heart emblem confirmed it.

"The Ember Celica."

All three of them couldn't believe their eyes. The very same ship they mentioned not half an hour ago was right before their very eyes, just out of reach from the royal harbour. But this went well beyond anything the Celica had previously earned its reputation for. Why would a ship infamous for theft go out of its way to attack such a prime target? Doing such a thing would rouse far too much attention and be too much of a risk for them to then dock and steal from the palace.

 _'Unless that's the plan.'_ The training Weiss had been through for the past few years was far fresher than that of her sister's. She'd been through all kinds of different military techniques and could name them off easily, even if very few were used in real life situations. But this was too far out of character for a pirate ship. That was the only explanation.

"This is a distraction!" Weiss called to her sister as she helped both her and Blake to their feet, hurriedly pulling them out of range from yet more incoming blasts. "They're already inside! The cannons are to distract everyone so they have a clear target!"

"You're sure?!" There wasn't much time to question. As another blast hit a little too close for comfort, Winter nodded. She'd trained her sister too hard to ignore her warnings now. "Alright, I trust you. Grab the guards you can and head to the Treasury as quickly as you can!"

With a quick nod, Weiss waited for an opening. Right after the debris had landed from a hit, she made a dash across the yard toward the opposing hall, straight in the direction of the Treasury. Leaving Blake and Winter alone.

"The King." Blake mumbled to herself, looking to Winter for some kind of guidance. "What about the King? They wouldn't come for him, would they?!"

"Now you're worried about The Ember Celica I see." Even in the midst of the chaos, Winter couldn't resist that small stab at Blake's judgement. But as another blast hit, she watched carefully to time when she could make a move for the hall herself. "I'd doubt it, but head to the King's Quarters to warn him. I'll fetch all the backup I can."

"R-Right!" Somehow Blake wasn't confident in Winter's judgement, but she was left with no choice. If no one was there, and this really was a distraction; it was up to her to warn and protect him. When Winter made a dash for the halls, so did she for the King's quarters.

The only hope that went through the advisor's mind was that the Treasury really was the intended target.

* * *

[[Happy NaNo! As I said before, this fic will be quickly updated through the month as my writing challenge. But since the main element is speed, it means I've not been editing. Please excuse if the work in this time is a little rough.]]

[[Good luck with your own NaNo works!]]


	3. Chapter 2

Pirates. Actual, real life, Pirates!

That was all that rushed through the younger Schnee's mind as she made her dash to the Treasury, sprinting as fast as she could down the various hallways and narrowly avoiding the guards who were rushing to aid those in the courtyard. Her sister may have asked and insisted she took a few with her, but she was determined to do better than that. She'd trained enough to take on pirates by herself.

Little did she know how much of a mistake that would be.

As she approached the Treasury doors, her theory for the attack was confirmed. The door was unprotected, thanks to the guards dashing off to provide aid to those in the affected areas. And even worse, the door was open.

 _'Oh no you don't.'_ Once close enough, Weiss immediately reached for her rapier sword, drawing it and proceeding with caution. _'Remember your training, Weiss. Keep eye contact, keep your stance straight, your body balanced. You can handle anything behind that door.'_

Placing her free hand on the door, she waited for her moment. She listened carefully for any activity, plotting her time to strike carefully. When she heard the jingling of coins too close to the door, she found her chance.

"Cease! By order of the Vale... guard...?"

When she thrust the door open and assumed her sword stance, she found the room empty. The sea view window was broken, and one of the chests was opened and empty, but other than that, no one was present. A thief had broken in, stolen the contents from one chest, and left. But how could they have done that so quickly?

Something landed on the top of her head. Something light, but sticky. Cringing at the strange sensation, she raised a hand to tap at what it was. And when she pulled it out of her hair to examine it properly, she discovered it was the most peculiar thing. A banana peel.

The surprise made her lower her guard as she raised an eyebrow at it. The room couldn't be empty after all. Slowly she looked upward to find its origin;

Until a foot came flying into her face. Stumbling backward from the sheer force of the hit, Weiss very quickly composed herself again, quickly holding her sword at the ready for whatever foe had dared to attack her. She shook her head to regain her focus, looking toward the figure who'd just landed among the gold.

A tall, well built figure stood before her. Blonde, with only an open shirt and a pair of ripped breeches as his attire. How fitting for a pirate, certainly not a uniformed guard like what should be in here. But there was a far more interesting feature she could see behind him. A long, blonde tail, one which was curled around one of the bags of gold, not letting it go. Such a unique feature had another benefit. His arms were free to draw a sword from his belt, and hold it level with her own.

"Wow, I feel sorta offended." The faunus pirate smirked as he paced around her, both gauging for an opening and to tease her. "Attacked by the infamous Ember Celica and they send _a runt_ to come get us? That's just rude!"

Snarling in disgust, Weiss glared in his direction, straightening her posture properly. Though she wanted to yell or scream at his sheer audacity, she had to remain calm. She couldn't give away a win that easily. Taking in a deep breath, she resumed her form just as she was trained, holding her sword at the ready. "By order of the Vale Guard, cease your actions immediately; or I will use deadly force!"

"Aww. How long did it take you to learn that off by heart?" The pirate smirked, quickly changing his direction and pacing the other way instead. Swinging the bag around idly in his tail, he continued to taunt her. "Seriously, they're getting desperate if you're the best they could send here. Do you seriously think _you_ can use deadly force on me? Don't make me laugh."

"Laugh at _this!_ "

With that, she found her own chance to strike. She lunged forward, blade making contact with her opponents as he parried her move. There was barely a second's delay when he struck again, swinging her sword around in an attempt to knock his out of the way. Another move which was successfully blocked. Her opponent might be dressed sloppy, but his skills were not.

The clashing of metal echoed around the room as blows and swipes were exchanged between the two foes. Both attempted to move in all manner of directions, trying to find the best way to get their opponent off guard. Neither was succeeding. The two seemed to be equally matched in their swordsmanship.

In a change of movement, Weiss refrained from striking the pirate directly. Instead, she tried to lunge for his tail that still held the bag of coins. But to her surprise, that was blocked as well. The parry he delivered even knocked her back off balance. Before he could take that chance to take advantage, she rolled aside. Leaping back to her feet, she immediately resumed her stance.

"Huh... Impressive" The pirate had to admit, pacing around idly again as he kept his sword at the ready. "For a runt, you ain't half bad. I might even struggle to get outta here."

"The only way you'll be leaving this room is either under my custardy," Weiss assured, following his movements "Or under my blade."

"Yeah?" He grinned confidently. "I'd like to see you try and kill me!"

Accepting the challenge, Weiss rushed forward to strike again.

* * *

The thrill of a fight was something trained guards actively looked forward to. But for one _not_ trained in such combat, the very thought of it brought only dread. That was what went through the head of the poor advisor, Blake, as she sprinted for the King's main quarters. She had to avoid the many guards who ran past her, and other various scared personnel as they fled the palace. She could only shake her head at the realisation that she was the only one willing to put her life on the line to rush to his aid.

Once she'd arrived at his quarters, it was a similar situation to the one Weiss faced back toward the vault. The door was open, and there were no guards nearby. While it was likely the King had been escorted to safety, Blake could feel something was off. As likely as it was, she needed to be absolutely sure.

Although not part of her uniform, she was prepared. From a small sleeve on her belt, she withdrew an iron dagger of her own. A small one he always concealed for her own protection. In these hard times, even a high ranking advisor could never be too careful. Holding it at the ready, she very slowly eased open the door.

It was quiet. All too quiet. As she gradually peered inside the room, everything seemed eerily silent. Blake continued to investigate, and paced further into the room.

Everything appeared as it should be. None of the chairs had been moved from their positions by their desks, no chests appeared to be opened. Even the bed remained perfectly made, with its curtains pinned back from around it. But it was empty. Surely if the King had ran to safety there would be some sign of a frantic get away?

But in the silence, she heard a muffled voice. Immediately she tilted her head, and listened out in the direction it came. The closet door. As quietly as she could, she walked closer and closer toward it, keeping her dagger drawn at the ready. And once close enough, she delivered three quick knocks.

"Sire? Is that you?" Blake was nervous. Though she was no stranger to talking to the King through walls to make appointments, it never had the element of danger like this did before. When she heard no response, she knocked again. "Sire, everyone is leaving the palace. The guards are readying in the courtyard, but we need to get you to safety."

Finally the door opened. But present behind it was not the king like she first thought. It was in fact the last person she'd hoped to see. Stood before her was the woman who was present on the bounty forms. A tall woman, with long blonde hair tied back into a pony tail, dressed in a long leather coat and thigh high boots. The most distinguishing feature was her right arm. Metal from the elbow down, with careful mechanisms of gears and cogs powered by a small steam generator. It was hard to not recognise a woman who was worth a fortune dead or alive. The infamous Captain Xiao Long.

Right away Blake held her dagger at the ready. This wasn't what she'd trained for at all, but she wasn't about to give in so easily. Eyes narrowing, she glared at her foe. "Where is the King?"

The pirate captain's metal hand was brought up to her chin as she seemed to hum in thought. All with a smirk that was all too confident. "Gee, I don't know. Where on earth could he be? Could he be... here?"

As she stepped to one side, she revealed the very person Blake was searching for. Their King, a once graceful figure of royalty had been stripped down to his underwear, and tied up and gagged, like a turkey waiting to be stuffed. While such a thing no doubt brought a sick joy to the captain, it made Blake's eyes widen, and gave her a horridly sickening feeling in her stomach to see someone stripped of his humanity and so helpless.

"Relax, he ain't hurt." Captain Xiao Long wasn't scared of Blake in the slightest. She walked forward despite the blade held in her direction, smirk growing that bit more when Blake edged back away from her. "Physically, anyways. His ego might be pretty bruised by the time I leave."

Nervously pushed back by Xiao Long's advance, Blake shook her head. "Why? What's the point of you even being here? Don't you pirates want gold, jewellery or something?"

"Yeah, pretty much." She hadn't even drawn her weapon. Just her presence and confidence was enough to push the poor advisor back further. Shrugging her shoulders, she explained. "But King 'Portly Piggy' here had something I am very interested in. Right here, in his quarters."

"A-And that is?" But Blake suddenly gasped when she felt her back come into contact with the opposing wall. Trapped! And the pirate barely had to put in any effort at all. It wasn't just her king's ego that was bruised.

Xiao Long didn't answer that question Something had caught her attention. Her eyes were in one direction, straight toward the top of Blake's head. The bow. Oddly enough, her smile slid from her face slightly, and instead her eyebrow was raised.

"... You and I have met before, haven't we?"

Eyes widening, Blake blinked in surprise. "W-What?"

"You seem... Familiar." The metal hand came up to grasp the blade, moving it aside and out of the way, leaving Blake just as helpless as the King in the closet. She wasn't afraid of a shivering advisor. But thankfully, she seemed to have no interest in harming her. "It feels like... You don't belong here. Somehow..."

Blake's breath began to pick up again. Shakily. Why had that comment brought more fear in her than anything else about her? However now it was mentioned, she couldn't help but look closer. Apart from the times she'd seen the poster, something was familiar about the captain. If she could see her without the metallic arm, or with the long blonde hair down, perhaps she'd know for certain.

But until then, she brought the blade up again, narrowing her eyes and snarling. "You won't trick me with your... Honeyed words. I know what your kind are like."

The captain could only shrug again, continuing to stare at the bow on top of her head. She was sure she'd seen it twitch on occasion as they spoke, but never brought it up. The closest she got was stepping back lightly, and speaking quietly. "And I know what your kind have suffered at the hands of people like your King."

Yet again, Blake was left wide eyed in surprise. But before she could question that further, she was distracted by the calls of guards down the hallways. But in that moment of her lowered guard, Captain Xiao Long found her chance to strike.

The metal hand grasped the blade once again, twisting it to force Blake to let it go. Within a fluid movement, she'd shuffled it to her other hand, moved swiftly behind Blake and pulled her into her body, bringing the blade up to her throat. All in a few seconds, she'd not only disarmed Blake, she held her hostage too.

"Do what I say, and I won't hurt you." The Captain's words didn't do much to stop Blake's panicked breathing. Regardless, the captain went on. "I'm not like them, when I say this is temporary, I mean it. I just need you to follow me so we can both be free."

"What are you even talking about?!" Blake desperately pleaded, trying to remain still as the taller woman pulled her toward the door. The last thing she wanted was to have her throat slit by her own blade. But that fear was nothing compared to the fear of the captain's words. Fear, not confusion like she was implying. "Why do you keep saying that? Where are you taking me?!"

That question wasn't going to be answered. Blake was simply pulled from the room with the blade remaining against her throat, pulled through each corridor and hallway with haste. Any and all guards were at the scene of the fight, far away from their location. Blake had no choice but to comply, and follow where this mysterious captain was pulling her. With only the promise of freedom once she complied to go on, there was little more she could do.

* * *

Metal continued to clash in the treasury. Weiss was no closer to bringing down her foe, nor was he any closer to escaping. The clock continued to tick, and it wouldn't be long until more guards would be on their way. Weiss would have to act fast if she wanted her solo arrest, and the pirate Faunus was running out of time for an easy escape.

The fight increased in intensity. In addition to traditional fighting, the boy used his agility to leap around to different places, parrying the different blows to try and knock Weiss off guard. While the display was impressive, Weiss would go further to combat it. She picked up her speed, swinging her light weighted sword this way and that in the hopes of knocking him off balance. But the boy was far to agile. This was a greater challenge than she anticipated.

At last the two swung a mighty blow in unison, both blades were level, blocking the other. But the two opponents were worn out. Both panted heavily, barely able to continue standing their ground against the other. While Weiss seemed determined even now, the Faunus boy could only laugh, gradually lowering the blade.

"Damn. You ain't a runt after all. I am very very impressed."

Barely able to catch her breath, Weiss nodded her approval. She couldn't deny, her enemy was skilled. Though she wouldn't admit it aloud, she would at least grant him that that compliment. But the battle was taking its toll. Where before her form was spot on to her training, it was becoming sloppy as she ran out of energy. There were times she'd stumble, times she'd take a few extra steps to get her balance. And her opponent could sense it.

When the door swung open again and Weiss took a glance toward it, he took his chance. Mirroring his captain, he delivered one hard blow to her sword to knock it away, quickly spinning himself behind her where he held the blade to her throat. While at first she yelped in surprise, she instantly quelled when the cold blade came into contact with her skin. Such action left them in an identical position as his captain and her hostage, who had just entered the room.

"What took you so long?!"

"I had to figure out how to get here while avoiding the courtyard." Captain Xiao Long informed him, pulling Blake with her. "What about you, Sun? You're usually way quicker at grabbing the goods."

"Yeah? I had a little problem."

To exaggerate, he pulled Weiss closer toward him, which instantly made her shift this way and that in struggle. "Release, me, this instant! Do you know who I am?!"

"Should I care?" Sun growled, pressing the blade further up against her neck to stop the struggling again. But any such confidence was fast disappearing as the calls of guards could be heard in the distance, along with footstep getting closer. The worried Faunus looked to his captain. "Yang, we need to go! They're gonna be here, any second!"

Nodding back toward him, she pulled her hostage and herself toward the broken window. Both Blake and Weiss had roamed the castle so recently they knew full well there was only one thing out that window. A sheer drop into the ocean. A leap that would definitely get them away from guards enough to make their get away, but a ridiculously high and risky one. There was no way they could be that desperate, could they?

It was about to be put to the test. The door slammed open once more.

"Cease, by order of the Vale Guard!"

Instantly Weiss perked up from her position. Winter! From her position, she managed to shuffle enough to see her stood in the doorway, sword at the ready, while two guards by her side aimed their rifles in their direction. But that moment of happiness was cut off again as Sun raised the blade closer to her throat.

"Hold your fire!" Winter immediately ordered. Right away her accomplices lowered their weapons. Where before her face was stern and formal, Weiss saw her sister in a light she never had before. She was worried, fearful. But the cold blade on her neck was a firm reminder as to why, and the reminder of the danger she was in.

As it pressed in further, Winter finally lowered her own weapon. She narrowed her eyes as she looked at the two pirates. Although Sun was the one who held her, she looked right to Yang instead, growling lowly, "Let, them, go."

But Yang could only shrug her shoulders. Yet again she pressed the blade closer to Blake's throat, able to feel as Blake swallowed in fear. Glaring just as much back at the eldest Schnee, she tilted her head. "I don't think you're in the right place to make demands, do you?"

When she saw Sun do the same to her sister, she lowered her guard even further. The two pirates could only smirk when they noticed her breath pick up in fear.

"She is of no use to you," She pleaded, taking a hesitant step forward. But the instant she saw them pull their hostages closer to the window, she froze. "P-Please... There's no point in making your bounty any higher."

That only brought about loud laughter from Yang. "My bounty's at ten thousand Lien! At this point, it's go big, or go home."

"I can lower the bounty!" She shouted in desperation, reaching a hand out toward them as if it would help. "Please! S-Spare her, and I'll pull a lot of strings. I can get it lowered significantly."

For a moment, Yang seemed to contemplate that. The pressure of the blade against Blake's neck was eased away as she watched what unfolded before her. A powerful member of the military, reduced to desperation. Rendered powerless purely because her sibling was in danger. It seemed to be something she reasoned with.

But not enough.

"Sorry, Ice Queen. Come too far to give up now."

In her confidence, she dropped the blade to give a confident salute, before she and Sun took their leap out the window with their hostages, to the sheer drop below. Winter could only yell in horror as she ran to its edge, watching as her sister, in the arms of the most dangerous pirates of Remnant, fell to the cold depths below.

For seconds after their plunge, Winter watched the surface like a hawk. Even in those seconds, it felt like hours. She had been powerless to stop it, and now her sister could have met a watery grave with them in their desperation to flee. The longer it went on, the more her breath began to pick up when that fear became more and more valid.

Needless to say, it was a huge relief when she saw them emerge again. Her sister was still in the hands of Sun, and the King's head assistant was still in the arms of Captain Xiao Long. Both were still in grave danger. But more importantly, both were alive.

That fear she had was soon replaced with anger. Hands curling into fists, she immediately faced the guards who had accompanied her. Glaring at them instead, she hissed. "Follow that ship, right now!"

"B-But, Ma'am!" One retorted, following as she already began to make her way toward the door. "The Ember Celica is unmatched in her speed, we'll never be able to catch her!"

"Then find me a ship that can!" She didn't even stop to respond. As they approached the courtyard, she watched through the broken wall as the Ember Celica already began to make its move, circling around to where it's captain and new members hit the water. It wouldn't take long until they'd be out of the docks, and gone for good.

"Uh, Ma'am?"

Winter turned to the scrawnier blonde guard, one that had been silent before. As she faced him, he immediately swallowed in fear, fumbling with the upright rifle he held in his hand. Managing to compose himself again, he spoke quietly and nervously.

"There's... Only one boat in the docks that can catch her." It caught Winter's attention. As she tilted an eyebrow encouraging him to go on, he had to swallow again, scratching his head nervously. "T-The Juniper, Ma'am. She's not a military ship at all, s-she's strictly a courier service! B-But, she's the quickest in Remnant. She'll be able to catch her, but unable to attack."

As Winter looked back at the slowly disappearing ship, her expression narrowed again. After what she just witnessed, there was no choice. Her sister was at the mercy of a dangerous pirate, and no other ship on Remnant would be able to catch up with it. If she were to put out the order to any at sea, there would be a risk of a possible cannon fight, which would risk Weiss's life even further. If a courier ship was her only option...

"Take me to it, Mr Arc." She demanded, glaring as the figure got further away. "And leave the attacking part to me."

* * *

[[Happy NaNo! As I said before, this fic will be quickly updated through the month as my writing challenge. But since the main element is speed, it means I've not been editing. Please excuse if the work in this time is a little rough.]]

[[Good luck with your own NaNo works!]]


	4. Chapter 3

The slam of iron doors echoed through the Ember Celica's lower deck. Of all the places Weiss thought she'd end up today, the brig of a pirate ship wasn't one of them. But there she was, a fine figure of grace and sophistication, reduced to a washed out, common prisoner. Upon pickup, the crew had hauled the four of them onto the ship, confiscated any weapons from both her and Blake before they were taken below to the cells of the brig. Separated, unarmed, and drenched; part of Weiss wished she was left to drown to spare her the humiliation.

"And why are we bringing them both aboard again?" Up until that point, both Captain Xiao Long and Sun had been relatively quiet. It was only now that Sun was asking the question as he locked the door to Weiss's cell. As he faced his captain again while she continued to shake the seawater off her coat sleeves, he pointed to her with his thumb. "This one's gonna get us on the Navy's red alert the longer we keep her here."

Confident as always, Yang could only raise her metal hand in the air to exaggerate her words. "And that is why you will always be the first mate, and never the captain." While he scowled, she stepped toward the cell herself, leaning against the bars. "My favourite word beginning with 'L', Sun. That's why she's aboard."

A confused Sun raised his eyebrow. "Lesbian?"

Yang groaned in frustration as she dragged the metal hand down her face instead. "'Leverage', dude. Leverage."

"Oooohh..." Though enlightened about Yang's word choice, he right away then tilted his head in confusion again. "Whu?"

"You saw how Winter Schnee herself reacted when she saw we had her, didn't you?" She once again gestured toward Weiss, as if she couldn't hear them. "We keep her aboard, we basically have a great big sign that says ' _Dont blow us to bits'._ "

The now wise first mate immediately grinned at that plan, subtly giggling to himself as he returned the keys to their holster on the nearby wall. "Ah, good one! I didn't think about it that way." However, his concerns weren't quite over. There was a second hostage, even if they hadn't locked her away just yet. One that Yang told to sit herself down on the staircase. The advisor. "And what about her? What's her use if you ain't gonna lock her up?"

"Personal reasons." Yang elaborated, leaning against the wall to one side in order to talk better to the both of them. "Same reason I picked V' up in Mistral that time, felt sorry for her being a human's pet."

"Excuse me?!" Blake had gathered the energy enough to speak again. The fall and the swim had taken energy out of both captors, but Blake had recovered far sooner. "I'm no 'pet', I'm King Port's most trusted advisor. That's my career!"

Yang seemed to nod in agreement. "Right, right, career choice, totally." But the instant she folded her arms; "Lemme just ask, how many Faunus are in as good positions as yours? Cause considering all it took was a bow, you've done pretty dang well for yourself."

From the cell, Weiss's eyes snapped open wide as she looked in Blake's direction. She may have been too tired to respond, but that didn't stop her from hearing. And listening intently.

And Blake could sense it. All eyes were on her, everyone was focused her way. She wanted only to run away, to avoid this conversation completely; but somehow she knew facing up to the three in this room would offer better chances than the pirate crew above.

"What are you implying? I'm just an advisor. A regular, _human_ , advisor."

It was a full minute that Yang stared back at her. Arms folded, one eyebrow raised, all her weight on one side. Definitely a judgemental look. Eventually she shifted away from the wall, forcing her hands into the coat pockets instead.

"I knew I recognised you. From way way back," She began, looking upward as she reminisced. "It was one of the Celica's first voyages, when I first had her under my command. Gotta be at least seven years ago now. We found ourselves right near one of Menagerie's docks, and watched as a slave ship was just leaving for Atlas."

It seemed her first mate was also recognising this story. Taking a seat on the steps leading to the upper deck, he whistled in admiration. "Menagerie; that really was years ago. Was just me, you and Tuckson back then, right?"

"Yeah, he knows this story."

Yang noticed what the tale was doing to Blake. She was even more withdrawn than she was had seen before. She knew if she wasn't drenched from the waters of the sea, she'd be sweating with fear. Her own past was unravelling, and there wasn't a thing she could do about it.

"You were one of the younger ones. Only a couple of years younger than me, but I could see you were scared. We rescued you and your family, dropped you off the safer side of Vale, where the three of you made a home for yourself in peace, right?" Confidently sitting herself at Blake's side, she looked to her directly, "So tell me, what made you go back to the kingdoms again?"

Everyone was focused on Yang's question. Once more, all eyes were on Blake again, especially those of Weiss, who'd only just gotten to know Blake as one of the King's closest employees. She could even call her his friend. She simply couldn't believe that Blake would be hiding something so big from him, from everyone, all this time!

But when it came from her own mouth, the truth was obvious.

"I couldn't sit around with a perfect life," Blake began, looking downward as the bow more obviously drooped. It moved so fluidly with her emotions, as though it was a part of her. "Not when my people are being subjugated, enslaved, and destroyed by people like them. I had to do something." When that didn't seem to answer Yang's question to a good enough degree, she went on. "So I did. I donned the bow and worked my way up, hoping to find a way to end it from the inside. A little black ribbon was all it took for me to infiltrate the palace. And now I'm just a hair away from being trusted to make the biggest decisions in the continent."

But right away, she growled once more, glaring back toward her. "Or I _was_. Until you kidnapped me, because you assumed I didn't have it under control."

Yang shrugged her shoulders as she stood again. She held her hands together as she stretched her arms upward, groaning in satisfaction. How on earth could a captain listen to such a tale and respond in such a lax way was beyond any of them. "Want my input? You'll never be in control doing it that way." When met with another scowl, she chuckled. "What? You know I'm right. That's what they want you to do. They want you to shut up and dance, do things as they do. If you want shit to change, you gotta start a riot."

"Well I can't start one of those either! Not from this ship!" Finally Blake stood on her own two feet, shaking the water off her sleeves. "So well done; you took me from my goal, boasting that I'd be truly free, then stuffed me on a boat; you might as well have stuffed me in a cell of my own! Then you talk as though you're any better than them, when you're just the same!"

Once again, Yang stood in silence. She neither agreed, not disagreed with the statement. In the end, she responded in a different way. To everyone's surprise, she opened her coat to reach to her holster on her belt, taking out the pistol to hand over to Blake.

"I'm not about to say that I'm completely different, because I'm not." She slowly took her hand off the gun as Blake took it from her, beginning to walk up the stairs again. But once her hand was on the handle, she looked back again. "But all I'm saying here is, this is a chance. You can get a boat back to Vale once we hit the shores of Mistral, go back under the book trying to go about it the 'moral' way; or you can come with us. It's not by the book, but it's getting noticed a damn sight more than following rules has."

For a while, Blake looked at the pistol in her hand. But she was still confused. "And what's giving me this going to do?"

Stepping to one side as Sun left the room before she did, she looked toward the girl in the cells below, then back to her.

"Let's just say... I think your need to get back at the military for all the crap they've put your kind through is way more than our need of a _'Don't blow us up'_ sign."

As the advisor watched Yang leave the room, she mulled over those words. For years, Blake had played it by the book. Undercover perhaps, but still by the rules. And it wasn't getting her anywhere. The most she'd done toward said goal was cut the hours of the kingdom's slaves a little, but that has been enough of a battle. But what other method could Yang even offer to her to get results so quickly? And why would she be willing to do that in the first place?

"You're a Faunus?"

Finally, Weiss found her voice again. She had been a lot more tired out from the fall than Blake, especially in the brief moment they had to wait to be hauled out the ocean. Now she was at least moving, bringing her legs forward as she stared up at Blake through the bars.

"You've been the King's advisor for years, and all this time, you've been one of... them?"

It was with those words Blake began to understood where Yang was coming from. If that wasn't enough of a clue that Yang was different from the rest of them back in the kingdom, nothing else was. She glared in Weiss's direction.

"There isn't a _them,_ " She clarified. "We're people, just like you. Just like your sister, like King Port. We're no different to any of you."

But Weiss was still confused. She watched as Blake's bow twitched yet again as she glared. Sure enough that it was hiding something beneath. Definitive proof. Sitting herself to a better position, she glared back. "Well, that's what you think. If the military didn't put you in line, you'll go back to your natural violent behavio-."

Blake's stunned laughter cut her off mid-speech. "I can't believe what I'm hearing!" Finally rising to her feet again, she looked once more to the pistol. Considering all they had been through, that sentiment that Blake had so much power and Weiss did not, seemed ironic. Pacing toward Weiss's cell, she growled lowly.

"This is exactly the problem! You judge our entire race on some out of lies that were told by people who think they're above us. You're either the ones giving us lashes, or you all turn a blind eye to the abuse we suffer because _'It's okay, they're violent, they deserve it because don't know how to be human!'_ "

"Don't talk to me like that!" It was an impulse reaction from Weiss, but someone from such a high background wasn't used to such mockery, and wouldn't stand for it. Glaring back at Blake just as badly, she snarled. "They're not all lies! You and the Captain were just talking about starting riots! How can you consider that then say you aren't violent creatures?!"

"Are you kidding me?!" Immediately Blake growled back, approaching the bars rather quickly. The longer this went on, the more angry she became. Both girls were in a stale mate. "What are we supposed to do?! I've been following the book for years, and it's done _nothing!_ At least if... I-If we made a scene, did something big, we'd get people to start thinking!"

Folding her arms, Weiss raised an eyebrow. "And just _how_ do you intend to do that?"

The anger was becoming too much. For too long Blake had sat by and watched as people were persecuted by the people she worked for. There were too many memories of her own poor treatment as a child, before Captain Xiao Long freed her those years ago. All she knew was hatred toward people like her, hatred she had to watch as if she were one of the people doing it herself. Hatred, she now had the choice to no longer stand for.

Now she understood why Yang had given her the pistol. Holding it properly, she raised it up in Weiss's direction.

Right away it drew a surprised gasp from the younger Schnee, and that confidence she temporarily had turned into fear. She raised her hands instinctively, staring wide eyed at the barrel. "W-What are you doing?" Her voice shook. "P-Put that down, now!"

But Blake never did. She continued to hold the gun toward Weiss's head, never once looking away. Never before did she have this level of power over another person, even in the desperate days of her escape as a child when everyone did anything to escape by any means. But now, Yang had put the life of another right into Blake's hands. A life who was involved with those who were responsible for her slavery the first time.

"You're giving me orders now?" Even though she didn't feel it, the voice sounded so calm. It was a strange sensation knowing a person's life was literally in the balance, and she was the one to have the power to tip the scales.

Weiss looked back and forth between the gun and the eyes of that who held it. Deep down, she was terrified, mostly because she was so defenceless. But she tried to stay firm. She'd been trained not to show fear. But what made her heart sink most, was knowing Blake had all the reason in the world to do it. She saw the abuse no end of times in her travels while training by different men of power, saw it not a few hours ago in the palace she so desperately wanted to work for. Now, she was in that position of life and death, one that people like Blake had been pushed into constantly.

"Y-You don't have the guts..." Even though she was testing it, could still hear her father's words in the back of her mind, that Faunus were a violent species. But Blake had never seemed that way in the time of knowing her. She was quiet, rather shy. Why would that suddenly change now that she knew she was a different species? Although she wanted to believe everything her father taught her was still to this day true, a part of her wanted it to be proven wrong. It was a deadly wager, but she was willing to test it as she swallowed. "I-If you did, y-you'd have shot me already."

Half of Blake's head was telling her to fire regardless, but another was begging for reasoning. In the end, that rational half was winning over the impulsive one. While the effects of killing one of her enemies would work well in the short term to a few people of the military, sparing her life would send a much more powerful message to Weiss alone. It would prove what she thought of Faunus was completely wrong.

Groaning in frustration, Blake lowered the weapon, dropping it to the floor before she sat back on the staircase again. No matter how loud that voice in her head was, she couldn't push herself to take a life. It just wasn't her, and it never would be. Back to square one after all.

Thankfully for Weiss, she never saw the relief on her face. She took a deep breath once the gun was out of reach, unable to help but shake as she lowered her hands again. For a while, she truly thought that Blake would have done it, not that she'd tell her that. "Hah... Knew you wouldn't. S-spineless."

In the end, Blake didn't reply at all. She brought her hand up into her bangs as she mulled over everything that had just happened. While there was so much reason to fire, she simply couldn't. Not because of the after effect it would have on the military back on land, or because of her job; she simply couldn't kill. While she inwardly cursed herself for being unable to do that, she was also relieved it didn't come as an easy choice.

Maybe that was Yang's test all along when she gave her the pistol in the first place.

* * *

Back on the deck, for Captain Xiao Long and Sun, things were as normal as they looked around the ship. In the moonlight, most of the crew were in their beds asleep. But some continued to work through the night. The Ember Celica had a hard working crew, made up mostly of liberated Faunus slaves, each for filling their duties with ease. In the middle of the night, little maintenance was needed unless there was an emergency, but some took to staying awake with one another should that arise. At the very least, it's Captain always felt pride that her crew could do things as they felt the need to, and life on board was relatively lax for them.

Pacing toward the mainmast, she looked directly up toward the crow's nest above. Cupping her hands by her mouth, she shouted up. "How's the sea looking, Velvet?"

As she looked up to the circular basket above, another faunus, with two large rabbit ears ears peered over the side. Their lookout. First, she spared Yang a small wave, before shouting back. "Clear seas all around, Captain! No clouds in sight!"

"Great work, V'! That should do for the night if you want to go to bed!" Not waiting around for her answer, she left her look out to it as she looked back to Sun again. "Well, this rate we should get to Mistral in about three days."

"Yeah, I've been meaning to talk to you about that..." The both of them paced to the starboard railing. At this time of night, and in such clear waters, the starry skies offered a beautiful reflection in the ocean's waves. A wonderful place to look out while having a conversation, so they both thought. But that wasn't on Sun's mind. "Why the rush to Mistral anyway?"

Leaning against the hard oak, Yang stared outward to the horizon. She allowed her left hand to rest on the wood, tapping her fingers rhythmically against it. "I got word that someone I need to see is gonna be there for a week. I need to catch'em before they leave, else I'll never find'em."

Scoffing, Sun sat up on the wood rails not far from her hand, curling his long tail around it for extra support. "When you say 'you got word', you don't mean Zwei told you, did you?"

Raising an eyebrow, Yang looked toward him with a smirk. "Hey, that bird ain't lead us to a bad spot yet, has he?"

Meeting her smug grin with narrowed eyes, Sun grumbled. "Usually the places he leads us to end in sword fights though." Looking away and back to the ship before them, he shrugged his shoulders.

"We always used to go out and just end up where we end up before, regardless of wherever Zwei ended up. But these past few weeks, since he brought back that drawing, it's like we've had a set path."

The grin vanished as soon as the drawing was mentioned. For such a chipper captain, it was odd to see Yang so unsettled. The rhythmic tapping had stopped, and she brought both hands together. "Does it matter if we are? We're getting richer as we go, so what if the path is more set than usual."

"Yeah, but if we are going on a set path, we should at least know that." Idly swaying back and forth in his seat as he stared at his feet, he went on. "Specially me, you made me First Mate cause you could trust me, remember?"

When Yang only answered with a small smile in his direction, but immediately stared back out again, he became concerned. Shuffling slightly closer, he went on. "And you still never told what the king had that was so important. I know you've taken risks before, but either this is something way bigger than treasure, or you've got a death wish."

Yang never once looked back at him. Instead, she looked downward toward the rippling waves as she ship continued its smooth sailing. With a small groan of annoyance, she answered his question. "It is bigger than treasure, but for now, that's all you can know. But it's part of the reason we're now headed to Mistral."

"To meet a guy." Sun finished the sentence for her. "Whom, you haven't told me who that is either. You know, for a captain, you sure keep a lot of secrets from us."

Rolling her eyes, Yang finally turned around, leaning her back against the railing instead as she stood by him. "Sometimes, for good reason. I need this meeting to go peacefully, but I know if the crew knew who it was I was meeting, they wouldn't let that happen."

"And that is...?"

Knowing she wasn't getting out of it o easily, Yang sighed reluctantly. She glanced around the deck first, then up to the Crow's Nest. Velvet and the other crew members had retired to bed, they were alone. Only once confident in that, did she look to Sun again.

"I need to meet with Captain Torchwick."

"Captain Torch-WHAAA?!"

In his surprise, Sun leant and fell backwards. If not for the tail holding onto the railing, he'd have gone overboard. Very quickly he recovered, shuffling himself back onto the rail again and hauling himself back onto the ship. That name didn't sit well with him, and clearly it wouldn't with the rest of the crew given Yang's reluctance to tell them. "Are you serious?! They're like, bad peep number one! They're the only pirate in the sea that has a bounty close to yours, and that's only cause they ain't afraid to pull the trigger!"

"Which is why I need the meeting to go well, because I'd rather get what I want without any bloodshed." She kept her voice down, yet again glancing to make sure no one had come out in that time. "What I got from King Port? Queen Goodwitch of Mistral has one too. Except she _did._ Until Torchwick and their crew took the damn thing."

"Wait wait wait, you're saying this... _thing_ you have, is part of a set? And you need _their_ piece? Are we seriously going around the world to make a collection?!"

But Yang's groan of annoyance was met with Sun's continued frustration. Once again, he expressed his main point. "You're mad, but this would be so much easier to get if I knew what the damn thing was!"

Running the metal hand through her hair, Yang scratched her scalp anxiously. She stood silent for a while to compose herself. As much as it looked like she obviously agreed, she wasn't letting up. But she settled for a compromise.

"Look, if it goes well with Roman tomorrow and we get it, I'll explain. But right now, I don't even know if it works. When I've got two pieces, I'll have a better idea, alright?"

Though he shook his head, her monkey tailed friend sighed, settling to looking downward instead. After shrugging his shoulders, he looked back toward her again. "Alright. So we're searching Remnants for remnants of something. How fitting."

"Hey no fair, I'm the pun maker." Yang smiled. Even though tension still hung in the air, the two could accept that was the best compromise they'd reach. And in the end, Yang patted her first mate lightly on the shoulder with her left hand, giving him a smile. "Go get some rest, dude. You've earned it."

Chuckling to himself, Sun smirked. "That'd be nice, but who's gonna take the night shift?"

"Me, doofus." When Sun didn't seem convinced, she lightly pulled him around to guide him toward the cabins. "Go on, I like sailing at this time of night anyways."

With a laugh, Sun obeyed that command. "Alright alright, I suppose I'd better check on the newbies before bed. See you in the morning!"

"G'night, monkey dude."

Once Sun disappeared behind the doors of the lower decks, Yang paced up the stairs to the stern of the ship. Right away, she took her rightful place at the wheel, holding it steady as she stared outwards to the open waters. Nothing in sight as her lookout said. Nothing but the starry skies and moonlight to illuminate the oceans before her. These kinds of nights were one she truly enjoyed.

But it was difficult to enjoy in light of things. The conversation with her first mate had her thinking deeply about her actions. She trusted her crew completely, and after all they'd done for her she was confident that they trusted in her too. Yet here she was, keeping secrets from all of them. Including the one she trusted most. As the only human crew member, it seemed a problematic situation to put them all in. Suddenly the advisor's comments about her being the same as them were springing back to mind.

Holding the wheel steady with the metal hand, she reached her left into her pocket, and drew a folded piece of canvas. Confident enough to let go of the wheel, she unfolded it slowly, staring down at it. It was a fragment of a map. A map of the world of Remnant. Two of its edges appeared torn, as though the original piece had been torn into four pieces. But her attention then turned to a piece of tattered parchment paper, that was folded within the canvas to keep it safe.

As she unfolded that as well, it revealed something that had Yang looking down a lot more seriously. A hand drawn rose emblem. The Captain remembered the very day her Palm Cockatoo, Zwei, had brought it back to the ship after a long flight. The member he first passed it to wanted to throw the ripped, creased scrap of paper away. But Yang held onto it as though it were made of gold. Even as she stared, it was as though she was looking at an old memory rather than a drawing.

"Can't believe you were so close..." She muttered to herself, folding it and the map fragment away, quickly tucking it back into her pocket as she returned to steering the ship.

"Hang tight, Lil Gem. I'll bring ya' home."

* * *

[[I think we're all fed up of hearing about it, so I'll keep this brief. In light of the news, I was deeply considering quitting NaNo, and writing queer fiction in general. Purely because I was upset, hurt, ashamed of the results the other night. But then it sort of hit me; in times like these, that's what they want. They want people like me, people like us to go back to hiding, to pretend we don't exist. Well I'm not going to do that. And I hope all of you out there that might be reading this, who were once inspired to write and create but have now been afraid to do so, don't give up either. The world needs our creations, our creativity, our diversity, now more than it ever has. The world needs **us** more than it ever has.]]

[[So create; draw that picture, write that story, paint that canvas, play that song; do everything you can to make yourself more obvious. Don't hold yourself back, no matter how scared you are of taking that first step. Because we need to show the world we'll be here. We'll always be here. And most importantly, we'll all be here for each other. I love you all, and wish you all the best in everything in the future. And I'm with you every step of the way.]]


	5. Chapter 4

It had been an agonising few hours of set up. While taking out a contract and paying the service took a few minutes, gathering supplies was a lengthier task. It would help if the crew had a rough estimate for how long they would be out at sea, but that was difficult to calculate given they would be in pursuit of a pirate ship. Not to mention, Winter's insistence of loading one or two canons for the ship had also delayed things.

"And last but not least; here's your crew members. Professional couriers, Nora Valkyrie and Lie Ren, and their ships personal Merc, Pyrrha Nikos."

Although Winter had rushed to get things started, she barely had time to make a meeting with the crew. It was only now she got that chance, a few minutes before the ship would even launch. Jaune had gathered the three of them to the deck, where they all stood upright side by side. The three presented themselves more like another fraction of the Vale army rather than couriers.

The first was Nora. A short, stocky girl with shoulder length ginger hair, dressed in a small jacket and a short frilled skirt. Definitely not a type of uniform Winter would accept in her army. Next was Lie Ren. A taller sailor with Asian features and long black hair, dressed in a green, sleeveless tailcoat with arm length gloves. Their final member was Pyrrha Nikos. A taller redheaded woman with a long pony tail trailing down her back. Unlike the first two, she was wearing much more suitable attire for battle. Golden armour plating covered her chest, elbows and shins, along with a golden tiara in her hair.

And yet, when she spoke, her words and voice were very soft. Certainly not what either of the two expected from the person they knew as a Mercenary.

"A-Actually, 'Merc' is such a crude term. That would suggest I'm just greedy and after money. Might I suggest 'The Ship's hired guardian' instead?"

Seemed the words fell on deaf ears. While Jaune smiled and nodded, Winter paced in front of them with her hands behind her back as she inspected them. When she reached the end, she suddenly turned to Jaune, and frowned.

"Is this it?"

The smile Jaune had when he looked at the crew fell when he was addressed again. Holding his hands together and idly and twiddling his thumbs, he tried to laugh nervously. "Y-Yeah. They're a courier service, that doesn't exactly need many."

"What about the lookouts? The first mate, the sail managers; this is not a crew fit to go after the Ember Celica!" Winter groaned in frustration, pinching the bridge of her nose and sighing. Looking back to the members again, and Jaune, she shrugged her shoulders. "When you said that this was the fastest ship in Remnant, I expected something huge and a big deal. Not three... Vagabonds just looking to make a bit of money."

"Hey watch it, lady!" Nora called up, having to be held back by her taller associate. However, they took that opportunity to clear their throat and speak up on the crew's behalf.

"Miss Schnee, first of all might I say what an honour it is to have you enlisting our services on such a Nobel task," They began, releasing Nora once confident she had calmed down. Once seeing they'd gained Winter's attention, they went on. "While the Juniper might not look impressive, I can assure you nothing in Remnants waters matches her speed. That much is assured because we don't carry any unneeded weight, like cannons or unneeded crew. And also thanks to-"

When Ren cut off by the elbow of Nora, Winter raised an eyebrow. Rotating one of her hands around to try and spur him on, she asked; "Thanks to...?"

"Classified!" Nora called up instead, folding her arms and smirking. "But you'll see. It's like, _super cool_ when it gets going, but we gotta be _way_ out to sea to do it."

Unconvinced, Winter rolled her eyes, looking toward Jaune again. "You're confident this ship can pursue them?"

"Yes." He replied without hesitation. Gesturing to the crew members with an encouraging smile, he explained; "My family, the Arc family, have been using them for years. They've always exceeded expectations and have never let a customer down. A lot of people think they can't just because they're piloted by a crew of three wome-"

An elbow from Pyrrha this time interrupted a speech. Clearing his throat, Jaune corrected himself; "A crew of women, plus Ren."

Bringing a hand to her chin in debate again, Winter seemed to stare into nothing. Out of everything, it was the best hope she had. The crew was nothing much, but they raised a good point about adding more weight to the boat than was needed. Anymore cannons would add a vast amount of weight as well.

"Very well." She then turned to him, standing straight and refined just as she was before. "Then I shall be expecting you to be on board with us as an extra hand."

"Oh good, I'm glad you- WHAT?!" Taken aback by such a suggestion, just as much as the crew it seemed, Jaune looked back and forth between them and his superior officer. "B-But... Your Highness- can I call you that? No? M-Miss Schnee then; Miss Schnee, I-I'm just an apprentice! I've never been on a ship, let alone one going after pirates. I got punched in the face when I tried to break up a brawl in the local pub!"

Scowling, Winter held her hands behind her back. "Well, it's a good thing you'll be on a boat, and not a pub; isn't it?"

She spared no time for the poor boy as she called out for the crew to begin setting sail. Doing her bit, she and Jaune headed to the ship's port to hoist the anchor as both Ren and Pyrrha handled the sails. And once Nora steered the ship out the port, they were headed out to sea at last.

Five crew members, three of which had very little experience with fighting, on a small boat. That was the only force Winter had to find her sister in time. If someone had told her a day ago she would be in this situation, she'd have laughed in their face. But it seemed that was the only option she had.

And as she looked over the railings to the clear oceans and starry skies, she could only sigh sadly. She desperately hoped their crew would be able to find Weiss in time.

* * *

Three days, just as Yang predicted, and the Ember Celica was arriving in the shores of Mistral. During the voyage, everything had been relatively quiet. While there was a lot of grumbling from their prisoner, Weiss, as she was taken fresh food each day, the majority of times, she was quiet.

In truth, she'd been thinking. Since that encounter with Blake, everything she'd known in her life had vastly changed. She saw how vastly different from her father's word the Faunus were, from all the crewmembers, and from the quiet advisor as well. She'd been with the kind of person whom her father, and everyone in the military and royalty, had described as violent, uncontrollable predators; and watched as they threw away the chance to kill her. Not because they were too weak to do so, they had more than enough chance; but because they didn't want to.

Not to mention, there was who Blake was before they'd been kidnapped onto the ship. Many letters had been exchanged between her and her father, many more between her and Winter on the King's behalf. And in this time, no one had a bad word to say about her. They'd all described her as a well spoken woman, highly educated and passionate in her career. Words that she'd never heard anyone in that class say about a Faunus. If they'd have known, Weiss knew for sure they'd never have said such things.

If they'd have known, she wouldn't even have the job.

That's when Weiss remembered her very first day. She remembered the slaves in the courtyard, scrubbing the pathways to keep it clean. She remembered the fear one had on their face when they had to stop, and the scowling Blake did in their direction on witnessing it. No wonder she felt so angry about it; there was no getting away from those horrors when she was put in a position of power. And the more she thought about how Blake must have felt, the more she tried to turn the situation around, and image humans in the Faunus's place; the guiltier she felt.

But what could she do stuck in a cell? Perhaps if she could bargain for her freedom somehow, she could assist Blake for herself. While Blake was in a somewhat higher position than other Faunus, so was Weiss. And she had the head of the military on her side. Possibly her father too over in Atlas if she could convince him. While the world wouldn't listen to one simple Faunus advisor, they might listen to a military force.

Speaking of Blake, where was she?

Sitting up from where she lay on her small bed, Weiss spied through the bars to the small bed under the stairs. That was where Blake had made her temporary home, and lay asleep. There was no reason for her to guard Weiss, and Yang had told her multiple times she was welcome upstairs with the rest of the crew; but regardless, she remained downstairs to guard her. The pistol still remained untouched, and hung on the hook next to the cell's keys.

They hadn't spoken since. They'd been in each other's company, but there was no conversation to be had. While Weiss didn't want to risk jinxing her theory that her father was wrong, Blake didn't want to be pushed further than needed. For the most part, she just wanted to get to dry land. At least from there, she could weigh up her options properly.

But Weiss was in her mind a lot. While she didn't want to push any buttons, she expected someone who really believed she was a violent creature to speak up and test that theory. But she never did. She certainly didn't say the best things in their moment of speaking, but she made no effort to prejudice her further. Maybe there was hope for the younger Schnee after all.

"WAKEY WAKEY!"

The obnoxious sound of Yang's voice was not what Blake wanted to wake up to. It may well have been the middle of the afternoon, but there had been nothing to do on the ship whatsoever while she knew no one. Sleep was the only pass time, and she grumbled as that was taken away. Turning in the small bedspace, Blake looked up toward the captain who leant over the stair's railings to get a good look at her.

"It is around five PM, Mistral time. We shall be arriving in our destination in approximately half an hour," As she neglected the rest of the stairs and hopped over the railing, landing on her feet with a dull thud by Blake's side, she continued her rather well spoken monologue; "We hope you have enjoyed your stay with us here at Celica Cruises, and hope you have a fantastic vacation!"

"This is not a vacation..." Blake grumbled lowly, sitting herself upright as she scratched the back of her head, one side of the bow twitching repeatedly. "If it was a vacation, I definitely wouldn't be going to Mistral."

"Awh why not?" Yang sat down on the edge of the bed and nudged Blake's shoulder with the metalic hand. "Mistral's a non-stop party! It's loud, got rum, got grass, no real law enforcement; got everything fun there!"

"You and I have very different ideas of 'fun'." Reaching downward to pull out her boots from under the bed, she looked toward Yang as she pulled them onto her feet. "But I guess, pirate town; of course it's something you'd fancy."

"Come on, it has... _some_ nice scenery I guess?" Deciding not to tease any longer, Yang instead looked upward as she leant back, idly kicking her feet over the edge of the bed as she waited for Blake to be done with her boots and jacket. "Anyways, we shouldn't be here too long; but if you wanted to head back to Vale, let me know when we're docked so I can sort you out a ride."

Once she'd forced her jacket back on, Blake took a moment to look ahead. Yet again, behind the iron bars; Weiss was silent. She'd clearly turned away to look elsewhere once Yang climbed down, but said nothing and made no effort of escape. Seeing that was particularly upsetting, considering how loud and confident the young Schnee was when they first met. Even if she wasn't the best of people.

That thought was still there, the thought that she could be better. But there was only one way to prove it.

"Are you gonna at least let Weiss out the Brig while we go ashore?"

That mere suggestion was met with Yang's sudden laughter. Loud and obnoxious, just as she was when first entering the room. "That's hilarious!" She cried out, wiping away a tear. "Weiss Schnee! Free on my ship! Weiss Schnee allowed on my _pirate ship!_ I-I can't-!" More laughter followed, but as it dwindled and slowly died, she saw the advisor wasn't laughing. Not even a smile. In fact, when she stopped completely, that blank face seemed to turn into a scowl.

"Wait... You're serious? You actually think she's gonna stay on the ship if we let her out? Are you really that naive?"

It piqued Weiss's interest. Although she didn't look directly toward them, she started to listen more intently, tilting her head into their conversation. An action Blake clearly noticed when she looked over, and swallowed when she spoke up again. "Well, yeah. I mean, it'd be cruel to not, you can't exactly keep her locked in here all day."

"Uh, watch me." Yang replied, unimpressed with how this conversation was going. Folding her arms, she asked; "Why would you wanna let her out, anyways? I mean, you didn't kill her; that... Well, I'm kinda glad that you didn't, but I'd have turned a blind eye if you did; but why on earth do you want her to just get off scot-free?"

From in the cage, Weiss lowered her head. She sighed deeply as she brought her knees up, hugging them as she settled her head against them, making herself appear as small as possible. Blake had no reason to help her, and Yang needed her. There'd be no way she was escaping just yet, and even less hope of being freed.

At least she thought not.

"I've just got a feeling she's different; that's all."

Blake's words made Weiss look up again. There was a glimmer of hope. One person, one whom she'd taunted and riled up in their initial meeting, was vouching for her. Maybe she really did have a friend after all.

Looking over to Weiss, Yang took a deep sigh to herself. "Alright then. Hope your hunch is right, though." There was no further arguments, and in the end, she hauled herself up from the bed again, stepping toward the staircase and taking the keys from their hook.

"Today's your lucky day, Ice Queen."

Weiss uncurled herself from her ball-like position while Yang started to unlock the cage. She stood up, staying back away from the door to give the captain enough room to swing it open.

"But you're not _totally free_ of course." Yang explained, stepping to one side as Weiss took tentative steps out her cell. Even if she seemed completely phased by the whole ordeal, Yang went on. "You get to stretch your legs on the ship, but that's it. And no funny business with the sails or the anchor while we're gone, I _will_ check."

All Weiss could do was nod slowly. She was still in utter disbelief. The very perso- no, the _faunus_ who held a gun to her face was the same who'd managed to convince a pirate leader to free her. While half of her wanted to thank Blake, thank the both of them for letting her out; her pride was stopping her. All she could do was look to the both of them silently.

"... Ooookay..." Sensing that neither of them were up for talking, Yang resigned to clapping her hands together as she turned to the stairs again. "Welp, I'm not really one for standing around in awkward-silence-slash-sexual-tension; I'll be upstairs with the rest of the crew. Laters!"

With that, she was once again dashing up the stairs, closing the door behind her. It was only once assured she'd gone that Weiss finally moved. She nervously shifted her weight onto each leg, rotating her foot around to loosen the muscles now that she had enough room to do so. As she reached to stretch her arms in addition, she couldn't help the enormous sigh of relief that followed.

It still didn't break Blake's silence. Weiss watched as Blake merely looked away from her, adjusting the sleeves on her jacket and buttoning it in place as something to do. She really wasn't going to open up so easily. Still, her pride stopped her from doing the obvious and apologising. Instead, she tried to make conversation another way.

"... I don't know about you, but she's certainly a lot more... accommodating than she looked in her posters."

While the silent advisor continued to give such treatment, she at least did something other than stand around. Approaching the pistol she hung up on the wall, she collected it again and tucked it into her belt, pulling her coat over the top of it after.

Tilting her head, Weiss narrowed her eyes. "Seriously? Nothing? You owe me an apology for holding a gun to my face. I mean, even if you didn't fire, you should still apologise."

Again, no response other than an eye roll. Blake simply reached up to better adjust her bow and keep it in place. A few test twitches proved it was securely in place.

Sighing, Weiss stood between her and the stairwell in a hope to get some sort of vocal response. "Then... I mean, I _guess_ I owe you a thanks for convincing her to let me out. Not that I should really thank you for doing the decent thi-"

That was cut off as Blake collided her shoulder with Weiss's as she walked by, heading up the stairs without a response. And that continued as she left the room, slamming the door shut behind her.

"Wow... They are definitely rude, that's for sure." Weiss muttered under her breath. The whole situation seemed to be one step forward and two steps back for the poor girl. But at the very least, today one huge stride forward had taken place. She was free.

Well, free under the condition she stayed aboard the ship.

 _'Forget that...'_ Weiss thought to herself as she sat herself down on the stairs. _'Who cares if they spared me? I'm not going to take orders from a hooligan and her gang of miscreants, and neither should I be expected to.'_

Bringing a hand to her chin as she thought about that, she was once again confused. Were they? Sure, Blake had spared her life and seemed to do all the right things, but one didn't excuse an entire race. Or did it? She was on a ship who's crew mostly consisted of them, yet not a single one had come down to take her life or even torment her. In fact, those that gave her food said nothing, not even a snide comment about her being held there. Blake could have been down to her blending in with humans for so long, but there was no way an entire ship could be a fluke.

A rumble could be felt through the ship. It could only have been the anchor dropping. It wouldn't be long at all until it would come to a full stop. Getting up from her position, she hopped up the stairs to wait by the door, listening eagerly as they shouted to one another to prepare the ship.

 _'Good or bad, I'm not letting Faunus keep me here. First chance I get, I'm getting the first ship back to Vale.'_


	6. Chapter 5

Mistral was a city with a reputation, but even its infamous status worldwide, it couldn't have prepared Blake for what she saw from the docks alone. The quiet, refined atmosphere of Vale was long behind them, and replaced with the loud hustle and bustle of drunken people of all classes and race. Definitely a Pirate city.

Most of the crew went their separate ways, some greeting the other residents they recognised and others heading to the many nearby inns for a well deserved drink of their own. For her own safety, Blake decided it was best to stick with the company she knew, so stayed by Yang and Sun's side as they headed into the town. After all she'd heard about the city, she was glad that she still kept that pistol after all.

Even if Blake trusted the Captain to keep her safe, that didn't mean she thought she was completely sane. If anything, from the daredevil antics of jumping from a window, and in freely handing her a loaded weapon, she was thinking quite the opposite. Their venture into Mistral would only make that worse.

A loud whistle at nothing seemed to prove that. While it didn't faze Sun at all, Blake was left utterly confused as to why, especially when all it seemed to do was attract the equally confused gaze of onlookers. But there was method in the madness, when in response, there was a loud squawk.

In the distance, from one of the nearby palm trees; a palm cockatoo began to fly in their direction. One which the two pirates recognised. Especially Yang, who raised her metal arm for it to perch on.

"There you are, Zwei." She instantly greeted him, petting the long feathers on top of his head, scratching under his chin. "Got anything else for me while you were out?"

Given that the bird shook his head, seemed Yang wasn't completely insane after all. Still, she continued to pet it. "It's okay buddy! You tried. But did you get where our _friend_ was headed, at least?"

In response to that, he seemed to nod his head, fanning his wings out as he excitedly squawked. "GRIFFON! GRIFFON!"

The bird looked onward to a building at the end of the path. A long, sturdy inn, which several drunken residents were stood outside of. But sure enough, there hung a sign with its name. The Griffon.

"Nice. We can have a drink while we go see him."

With Sun and Blake agreeing, the three continued their path through the town. Forcing his hands into his pockets, Sun was still concerned. "And you're really sure they're gonna be a cool as you said? Their bounty posters aren't giving me much confidence. Ain't it up to nine thousand lien now?"

"Hey, I'm over ten thousand. Probably loads more since that Weiss girl is a big deal as well." Yang then looked over to Blake, giving a smirk. "And I suppose even more since you're his main advisor, or something. Sorry 'bout that."

Shrugging her shoulders, Blake spoke quietly. "I-It's fine. I think you'd get more additional bounty for hog tying and humiliating him than for kidnapping me."

"Heh heh heh, that was hilarious; I bet the guards were scarred with the image of him in his briefs for weeks."

Although she tried to chuckle with them, as they got closer to the inn, Blake began to feel nervous again. Both Yang and Sun were being unusually quiet about whom they were supposed to be meeting in the inn, but talk of such a high bounty wasn't putting them in a good light. While there was the reassurance that Yang had never really killed anyone, chances were anyone else with a bounty that high would not be the same.

There was reassurance in knowing that she had a choice. Should this meeting go well for them, she could still chose to venture back to Vale, continuing her job as though nothing happened. But that was just it; nothing would happen. Things would be just as they were, day to day tasks as she hid in plain view, telling herself she was making a difference when there was really none at all. Was that what she wanted?

One side of her bow twitched. Even from a fair distance away, Blake could hear the faint sounds of chains rattling from the docks.

When she turned back to look, sure enough she saw a figure climbing down the anchor's chain. Weiss. She'd expected her to try and make an escape once freed, but never so soon. While groaning to herself in annoyance, deep down she was grateful for the reason to not go with them. Even if perhaps a wanted criminal could be kinder than the closed minded Schnee.

"I think I left something on the ship." Blake called back to them, already beginning to backtrack. "I'll find you again later?"

Turning in confusion, Yang placed her spare hand on her hip as she raised an eyebrow. She could sense it was a lie. "You seriously scared of a pirate inn?"

The cockatoo squawked as it hopped on the metallic arm, speaking again. "SCAREDY CAT! SCAREDY CAT!"

"Actually it's-"

Once more, Blake stopped herself. With Yang's attitude toward Weiss, chances were if she was to be the one chasing her, things would end up a lot more violent than needed. At least Blake knew how to talk reasonably.

"Okay, yeah. I'm a lil' nervous. But can you really blame me? You're meeting someone with over nine-grand worth of bounty."

"SCARDEY CAT, SCAREDY- MFF!"

Yang quickly stopped Zwei from chanting once again by pinching his beak shut, the confused expression turning back into her smug attitude again. While she didn't quite believe her, she wasn't going to question it any further. "Fair enough, I guess they are kinda scary when you put them that way. Make sure the princess is still onboard when you head back, will ya?"

Blake laughed nervously, nodding as she continued to backtrack. Funnily enough, she knew that last part would pose a slight problem.

* * *

While the streets were loud, the interior of The Griffon inn put it to shame. Everywhere was the bellows of drunken men and women alike, laughing joyously together, some aggressively shouting. A true pirate's atmosphere to go with the rest of the city. Not the ideal place for a weary traveler to rest their head, but a perfect place for more dishonest folk to meet and share stories.

And a perfect place for an infamous Captain to hide from the law, yet be known enough to find new members.

Hide as they may, Yang knew what she was looking for. And right away she nudged her friend. "Got'em"

Sun looked around confused, raising an eyebrow. "You can see 'em already in this crowd?"

"It's knowing where to look, dude." Gesturing out to where a crowd gathered around a table, most of which were all wearing matching white coats, Yang explained. "White's their thing, they're a popular peep. Safe to assume they're there."

"Uh-huh." Shrugging it off, he instead looked toward the bar. "Well, you know how I feel about 'em. I'll be boozing it up if you need me."

"I thought this was the chicken." She shrugged the shoulder where Zwei perched. Seeing as neither was amused with such a phrase, Yang nodded. "Fine. Hey get me one for when I'm done."

Leaving Sun at that, she made her way through the busy room, sliding herself past the many residents sat all too close in the confined space. Even if it was overfull, this place was home for most of them. A place they could meet and laugh without the worries of the law. In fact, it was a rather nice change to see how much better the Faunus people were treated in comparison to Vale.

Finally, among the white coated crowd of the largest table, Yang spotted her target. Anyone could pick out the captain among their crew judging by how much nicer their jacket was, along with the upper class bowler hat with a recognisable feather placed upon it, along with yet another cigar in their mouth. Honing in on them, Yang eventually managed to get within their range of hearing, calling up above them.

"Roman Torchwick."

Not only did their head turn, but many of their crew members did as well. It got very quiet all of a sudden around the group's table, many looking over in sheer shock. But Roman seemed pleased. Taking a long drag of the cigar first, they eventually took it between two of their fingers and lowered it, blowing smoke up into the air before grinning back at her.

"Well well, if it ain't Captain Clockwork and her dicky-bird. Didn't expect to see you 'round here for a while."

Shrugging her shoulders, Yang took a spare stool from one of the other tables, pulling it toward her as she stepped closer. "Welp, here I am. So budge over, we can have a lil chat."

"Oh goodie." What choice did they have? Shuffling their seat side-ward, they made room for Yang to sit beside them. Once she was among the group, the rest of the crew went back to what they were doing, laughing among one another and drinking. Something the both of them were grateful for, it seemed. Leaning in closer for a moment, Roman spoke quietly to her. "I'd ask you if you wanted a drink, but I'm guessing you'd have already got one if you're here to boast about your adventures, right?"

"You guessed right." Yang assured him. She rested her metal arm on the table a moment, giving space for Zwei to perch there instead. With her spare, she stroked his feathers gently. "My lil' birdie here told me you were staying here a few days, and that you might have something I'm after."

"All that from a cockatoo? Either he's really clever, or you're crazy bird lady." They laughed, taking another long drag from their cigar, blowing it up into the air again. "Still, beats cats I guess. So what is it you think I have, exactly?"

Drawing her hand away from Zwei, Yang reached into her pocket. She pulled out the piece of canvas, laying it down on the table and unfolding it. The fragment of a map.

"I think you got a piece of this."

While before they seemed to be rather smug and calm, now their eyes widened. They took one last drag of the cigar before putting the remains in a nearby ash tray, twisting it firmly to put out the lingering flame. As they chuckled to themself, the smoke escaped from one side of their mouth. "Well, Xiao Long, seems you really have been on an adventure. Last I heard the four pieces of this were-"

"Given to the rulers of the four kingdoms." Yang finished, smirking as she looked up in reminiscence. "Yep, was a real close shave to get that piece. Had to hogtie up ol' Port to stop him from squealing like a pig when I broke into his room."

"You actually _hogtied King Port?!_ Damn, I would'a paid to see that!"

Roman laughed, shaking their head in disbelief as they turned their stool to face her direction properly. Something a person of their stature would only do if they meant business. "Well, I don't have one of the pieces. _However..._ I know who does."

Her head tilted. "Who?"

Without a moment delay, Roman turned to the seat next to them. Sat there was young, petite woman, with brown and pink hair, dressed in a matching white coat to Roman's. She offered a small smile to the two of them, giving a brief wave in recognition, but no single word was spoken. The captain knew exactly who she was however.

"Oh, your lil' pipsqueak."

"Hey, watch it!" Roman quickly piped up, glaring back at Yang again. "Neo might be deaf, but I ain't."

"Yeah, that still doesn't stop her bein' short." But back to the subject at hand, she looked toward the woman. She pushed the piece of the map toward her so it was in her view. Once Neo looked back up to her, she made sure to speak clearly, and was sure not to talk too quickly as she asked; "You have a piece of this?"

A nod. Once she had the attention of Roman in addition, she made several gestures with her hands, a smirk seeming to grow as she did so. One that certainly put Yang on edge.

Serving as an interpreter, Roman turned to Yang once she was finished. "She said 'Assuming you're going after the other two as well, what do you want it for?"

"None of your business." Yang immediately responded. Though when she realised that was too fast for Neo to lip-read, she tried again. "Sorry, that was rude. But why do you need to know?"

After several more gestures of her hands, Roman once again translated. "'We went through a lot of trouble to get it, and she'd rather not know it's being used for crap."

"Yeah, well... That's private anyway. Look, you willing to hand it over or what?"

Tapping her chin in thought, she then looked to Roman. Another smirk formed again as she tapped them, and gestured with her hands once more. Only this time, they didn't translate. An entirely private conversation was happening right in front of her, and she could only look on they joined with the smirk, and chuckled. "Oh ho ho, you sly little fox."

Once she was done, they looked back to Yang again, with a large grin. "She made a point of saying that map could, if you wanted it to, lead you to endless gold. So putting a price on it, totally pointless."

Yang nodded her head, rolling her eyes. "Figured you'd say that. So what kind of thing would you want in return instead?"

Raising an eyebrow, they asked; "You're still piloting the Ember Celica, right?"

"Yeah?" It seemed an irrelevant question, until the penny dropped. They wanted her ship! Instantly she shook her head. "Oh no, there is _no way_ you're taking her."

Shrugging their shoulders, they turned back to Neo again, gesturing with their hands. After a shrug back from Neo, they looked back to Yang, and mimicked the shrug. "Then I guess you're not getting our piece. Good luck with finding the other-"

"Wait..." Very quickly Yang called up. She may not want to give away her boat, but she couldn't reject the offer so easily. She _needed_ that piece.

"Why so interested in the Celica? The Melodic Cudgel's just as good, right?"

"Size and space? She's just as good. But for speed, oh no. She's nowhere near fast enough for the heists I wanna pull off." Turning back to face her again, he smirked. "Ember Celica, on the other hand? She's the fastest ship in the ocean. In fact, I'm pretty sure she could outrun the Glass Slipper, god forbid you ever met it."

It was as though Yang had seen a ghost. That name sent shudders down her spine, and made her unable to keep eye contact with her company. She took her piece of the map back with her left hand, quickly tucking it into her pocket before they could taunt her more. She then shook her metal arm to force Zwei to move to her shoulder instead, and then lowered it to the table where she made a point to tap rhythmically on the table to draw attention to it.

"That ghost ship? Yeah, we already met. That's how I ended up as 'Captain Clockwork'."

"Oh really?" The corner of their lip rose. "What say you tell us all about you and your valiant battle against the Slipper, then we talk business?"

Roman was clever. They knew if they wanted to get the best deal out of their encounter, they'd have to play it slyly. Playing on Yang's likes and tenancies to boast would be a strong move, one they would certainly take up. A trick that was all too easy to pull off.

And as predicted, Yang fell right for it.

"So there I was, me versus a thousand Grimm..."

* * *

[[Hey all! Sorry for the delays. A bunch of stuff has happened and I couldn't write for a bit, but I'm hoping to be publishing again. I'll be updating this fic and Off the Radar at the same time, so stay tuned!]]


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